Hugo Chavez reveals his daily 'coca fix'

New York, Jan 27 : Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez has revealed the secret of some of his strength - chewing coca, the source of cocaine, 'every day in the morning'.

Chavez let slip his drug use during a four-hour speech last week to Venezuela's National Assembly.

"I chew coca every day in the morning . . . and look how I am," the New York Post quoted him, as saying.

According to the Miami Herald, one of the few news organizations to report his remarks, Chavez, a teetotaler, said Fidel Castro "sends me Coppelia ice cream and a lot of other things that regularly reach me from Havana," while Morales "sends me coca paste . . . I recommend it to you."

Recently, rumours were making rounds that Chavez and supermodel Naomi Campbell were seeing each other.